A Media Academy for Pros (MAP) course, Business and Finance Data Visualisation, is on offer at the HKU Shanghai Study Centre in Shanghai from May 18 – June 2, 2011.

Juan Velasco

This two-part course, co-organised by the Journalism and Media Studies Centre and SND, is designed for journalists to learn how to turn complex business and financial data into easily understandable stories, understand the craft of business and financial data visualisation and also to effectively create a newsroom environment conducive to collective creativity.

Two renowned experts in the field will teach this six-day course: Rickard Frank, Editor-in-Chief of Trelleborg Allehanda, Sweden’s southernmost newspaper, and Juan Velasco, Art Director of National Geographic magazine in America.

Rickard Frank

The course will look at the need as well as the competition for data visualisation in finance and economic reporting. How do you meet the needs of readers today and how can news sites and newspapers win in an ever-competitive environment? It will look at examples of best practice from both the US and Europe.

Through practical exercises in Illustrator and InDesign and also through conversation and sketches, participants will find simple ways to present complex information that is easy for readers to understand.

There will also be a practical guide to participants interested in developing the skills needed to create business and finance charts and information graphics.

Participants will grasp the foundations of understanding numerical information and financial indicators, working with charts, visual storytelling and the process of designing and editing engaging information graphics.

Using simple and advanced Excel and Illustrator techniques, they will demonstrate those skills in practical exercises, as well as on an advanced hands-on project.

At the end of the course, participants will be able to return to their newsrooms and raise professional standards in reporting using a variety of graphic storytelling tools. They will be in a position to inspire their colleagues and improve creative teamwork.

The class size is limited to 35 students. To secure a seat, please complete the Course Registration Form with the tuition paid proof, (bank transfer/deposit receipt), and e-mail to jmscsh@hku.hk or fax to (86) 21 6307 0918 ext 116, as early as possible. When the Registration Form and tuition payment proof is received, we will send a confirmation e-mail to you.

A Media Academy for Pros (MAP) course, Business and Finance Data Visualisation, is on offer at the HKU Shanghai Study Centre in Shanghai from May 18 – June 2, 2011. This two-part course, co-organised by […]